Summertime Drinks..

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Summer drinks

I was surprised to discover this fine and sunny morning that I’d never written a post for you on my favourite Summer time drinks, but what better time to remedy that than our first Summery Sunday, and on a Bank Holiday weekend too?

Regular readers – hello you two! – will know that I make Sloe Gin every Autumn, but rarely have any left for Summer time drinks, as it gets used up/given away over Christmas. However,  following the festive non-event of 2020, I actually do have a bottle left – a silver cloud perhaps, but probably not making up for having no visitors at all over Christmas last year. But here I am, preparing to add a dollop to that bottle of chilled Prosecco from the fridge..

Here’s the recipe, if you can even call it that!

INGREDIENTS:

  • Sloe or Rhubarb Gin
  • Chilled prosecco

METHOD:

  • Pour a tablespoon of your Gin of choice into a Champagne flute
  • Top off with Prosecco
  • Sip in a shady spot

rhubarb gin 2

sloe gin 3 (2)

 

APERSOL SPRITZ:

Another huge favourite of mine – I particularly like that you can add Prosecco or not, depending on your taste – I’ve actually got used to just having an Aperol with just soda water and a big slice of freshly-cut Orange – just perfect!

Aperol spritz (4)

 

Another real Summer time favourite of mine is the Dressed Pimm’s. I’d never had one – which contains one of your 5-a-day by the way! – until our daughter went to university in England. All those long trips to and from the south of England were made easier by the addition of days spent by calm rivers sipping on these quintessentially English beverages! I wasn’t too long bringing this recipe home to Ireland where it sits in good and ancient company amongst my stash of imported recipes, stolen from all over the world! :)

DRESSED PIMM’S:         pimms

INGREDIENTS:

  • Pimm’s No 1 Cup – or a good imitation which I found in Sainsbury’s  – I can’t remember what it’s called but it’s on the shelf beside the Pimm’s.
  • While lemonade
  • Ice
  • Thick slices of skin-on fresh cucumber –
  • Hulled strawberries, cut in half
  • Slices of orange
  • Some fresh mint, lightly crushed

METHOD:

  • Put all the fruit and a handful of ice into your largest jug
  • pour  over 100mls of Pimm’s or more, depending on what time of day it is 😉
  • Top it off with the while lemonade
  • Add the crushed mint, and stir well
  • Serve in long glasses

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Freiend for dinner - Pimm's in the garden

 

Moving on now to the Non-Alcoholic part of this post:

It may surprise some of my nearest and dearest to realise that I’m not a big day-time drinker, unless I’m on my holidays because that’s different, right?

So here’s my useful list of easy Summery afternoon drinkies which will leave you fit to form a coherent sentence, and even think about dinner later on! I know you’ll thank me!

THE HUGO: First discovered at a wonderful wedding in Sicily several years ago, and still a firm favourite. This couldn’t be easier – Some Elderflower Cordial – Shop bought is fine of course, but following some very useful advice from an old school friend, I now freeze a few 500ml bottle of my homemade Elderflower cordial every year for these early summer days when our own Elderflowers are only coming into bud.

https://eatingforireland.com/recipe/homemade-elderflower-cordial/

The Elderflower cordial is poured over ice into a large balloon glass, and topped off with slices of Lime or Lemon, Soda Water, and a handful of crushed mint. Delicious and refreshing!Hugo June 2018 (5)

Robert and Pia 18.5.2018 (19) - Copy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

MINT A l’EAU: Perfect for those of you with rampant Mint growing in the garden! This very pale green minty drink is perfect Summer drinking..and also prefect for adding to a Hugo. Some people find it a bit too ‘toothpaste-y’ but there’s no denying that it’s summery!

https://eatingforireland.com/recipe/summer-mint-syrup/

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And finally – shamelessly stolen from my sister-in Law Dorothy in Australia – my absolute favourite Summer afternoon drink – Iced Coffee!

https://eatingforireland.com/recipe/dorothys-iced-coffee/

iced coffee 3

I’ve added the possible – ahem – ‘flavourings’ you can add to this Iced Coffee recipe!

iced coffee

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cold coffee, milk and Ice-cream – how can it go wrong ? Blended and poured over a scoop of Vanilla ice-cream.. I’m going to make some right now!

I hope you get to try some of these delicious drinks while we enjoy our Irish Summer!

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The Blackwater River from the Argory)

About

I started writing down recipes in an old copybook when I was about 16. With 6 children at home, my Mother was always glad of a hand in the kitchen, and really allowed us to experiment - as long as we washed up afterwards, and left the kitchen immaculate! Having a tidy kitchen has followed me through my life, as has the habit of writing down my favourite recipes; except that these days I write them for my website, and add photographs when I can. The website really started when it occurred to me that my daughter might like to have these recipes when I've forgotten them. In my early days of cooking for family and friends, I used to phone my Mum all the time to ask her for the recipe for some of our favourite family dinners. She rarely had a recipe to hand - I think, like me, she made a lot of it up as she went along.. So welcome to Eating for Ireland - these are the recipes that my friends and family having been eating these past 40 years.. yes, I truly am ancient! They are tried and tested, and have worked for me for all that time - I have updated them as new ingredients became available - I really hope you'll find something that you can make into a family favourite of your own. You don't have to tell anyone where you found these great new dishes that you're serving up - it can be our little secret, but I'd really love it if you could give me a sneaky 'follow' on Facebook and Instagram.. So off you go - have a good rummage around, you're bound to find something new! My sincere thanks to all of you who have found a recipe that you liked and dropped me a line to tell me - I really do love to hear from you! Happy Cooking! Becks xx

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